Now that Netflix’s Geeked Week is here, we’re finally getting the goods when it comes to the hottest new projects on their way to streaming service. And that includes Wednesday, the Addams Family reimagining that marks the first time the ooky, kooky clan has been brought to live-action since the 1990s. This Monday, Netflix unveiled our very first look at star Jenna Ortega in character as the titular gloomy teen. Check it out above.
As the trailer says, Wednesday comes to us from the “twisted” mind of goth king Tim Burton — seriously, how has it taken so long for that man and this franchise to come together? Just as you would expect, Burton’s put his own spin on the material to make it even darker. Note that Thing, the family’s handy servant, now has Frankenstein-like stitches all over him, suggesting he’s some kind of mad scientist’s experiment.
As for Ortega’s Wednesday herself, the character is a faithful recreation of the original design from creator Charles Addams and retains the pigtails and black collared dress worn by every incarnation of the Addams’ eldest, from Lisa Loring in the 1960s sitcom to Chloe Grace Moretz in the contemporary animated films. What marks Ortega’s iteration out from her predecessors, though, is the addition of some heavy bangs.
Joining the Scream star for the series is Christina Ricci, a former Wednesday herself, much to the delight of Addams obsessives everywhere. Also on board are Riki Lindhome, Jamie McShane, Percy Hynes White, Gwendoline Christie, and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia. Don’t expect the rest of the fam to appear too much, though, as Wednesday follows the teen as she attends Nevermore Academy, a boarding school for supernaturally superpowered kids (yes, Wednesday has superpowers now).
A release date has yet to be confirmed, but expect Wednesday to click its way onto screens sometime later this year. Around Halloween seems like a solid guess.